Swartzia polyphylla DC.

  • Authority

    Cowan, Richard S. 1967. Swartzia (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae Swartzieae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 1: 3-228. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Fabaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Swartzia polyphylla DC.

  • Type

    Type collection. J. Patris s.n. (G), "Cayenne," French Guiana.

  • Synonyms

    Swartzia acuminata Willd. ex Vogel, Tounatea acuminata (Willd. ex Vogel) Taub., Tunatea acuminata (Willd. ex Vogel) Kuntze, Tounatea acuminata var. puberula Taub., Swartzia acuminata var. tridynamia Huber, Swartzia acuminata var. puberula (Taub.) Glaz., Swartzia platygyne Ducke, Swartzia opacifolia J.F.Macbr., Swartzia urubuensis Ducke

  • Description

    Description - Tree 3-40 m tall, the trunk to 4 m diameter, deeply fluted and lamellate, the branchlets microscopically malpighio-strigulose, glabrescent; stipules usually caducous, occasionally persistent, triangular, 0.5-1 mm long and wide, microscopically malpighio-strigulose; petioles (15-)20-40(-60) mm long, terete, densely to sparsely malpighio-strigulose microscopically but soon glabrescent; rachis similarly pubescent, terete, (5.5-)10-17(-26) cm long; leaflets (2-)3-5-(-7-) jugate, the petiolules (2-)4-5 (-11) mm long, canaliculate, microscopically malpighio-strigulose but soon glabrescent, the blades (4.5-)6.5-11 (-15.5) cm long, (1-3-5 (-7) cm wide, mostly elliptic or oval but occasionally lanceolate or ovate or lanceolate-elliptic, the base acute or, more often, rounded and finally acute, or less often, obtuse at the petiolule, the apex acuminate to long-acuminate, glabrous on the upper surface, often minutely tessellate beneath, or also sparingly micro-strigulose and soon glabrescent beneath, the venation obscure to prominulous, the costa impressed and the primary veins plane to slightly salient on the upper surface, on the lower surface the costa salient and the primaries plane to slightly salient; inflorescence racemose, mostly ramuligerous, occasionally axillary, (4-)6-16(-25) cm long, the axis densely to sparingly malpighio-strigulose microscopically, the bracts deciduous to persistent, triangular, 0.5-1.5 mm long and wide, microscopically malpighio-strigulose externally, glabrous within, the bracteoles persistent, lanceolate or ovate, arising near the apex of the pedicel or more commonly about its middle, 0.5-1.5 mm long, 0.3-0.9 mm wide, acute, microscopically malpighio-strigulose externally, glabrous within; pedicels (4-)5-7(-12) mm long, micro-strigulose; buds globose or subglobose, (5-)6-8(-9) mm long, 6-8 mm diameter; calyx segments 4 or 5, usually verruculose minutely on the outer surface but rarely smooth, externally microscopically malpighio-strigulose densely to sparingly, glabrous within; petal white, glabrous, the claw (3.5-)5-7(-8) mm long, the blade oblate, rounded to truncate to cordate basally, (9-) 12-20(-25) mm long, (10.5-) 20-25(-30) mm wide; larger stamens 2-5, glabrous, the filaments 15-20(-25) mm long, the anthers oval to oblong, 1-2 mm long, 0.7-1 mm wide, the pollen mostly globose, 31-34 n diameter, the smaller stamens glabrous, the filaments (7-)9-12 (-15) mm long, the anthers quadrate to oval, 0.6-1.5 mm long, the pollen elliptic, 36.5-39 long, 28.5-31 p diameter; gynoecium glabrous or rarely the ovary with a few hairs on the dorsal margin, the stigma truncate to capitellate, the style (4-)8-12.5 mm long, the ovary narrowly elliptic, arcuate, (4.5-)6-8.5 mm long, 1-2 mm wide, the gynophore (6.5-)9-14 mm long; fruit glabrous, cylindric to oval or obovate in outline, 6.5-12 cm long, 4-5 cm wide, 1- or 2-seeded, the outer surface chocolate-brown with conspicuous pale or white lenticels, the stipe 15-20 mm long, glabrous; seeds more or less reniform, 25-70 mm long, 15-40 mm wide [fide Ducke].

  • Discussion

    It is unfortunate that the widespread species well known as S. acuminata must have its name changed but frequency of usage does not enter into such considerations. I have studied the Patris collection which formed the basis for S. polyphylla DC., and there is no doubt in my mind that this is the correct name for this species. The generally accepted name S. acuminata Willd. ex Vogel is based on a collection in the Willdenow herbarium which I have not been able to see, but of which I have an excellent photograph provided by Dr. G. M. Schultze, Berlin-Dahlem; there is little doubt that this is conspecific with the Patris material. Otherwise I have seen type material of all the other synonyms. Vogel in publishing Willdenow’s herbarium name listed two lettered varieties, differing in the form of the leaflet bases. His second variety is represented by Willdenow Herbarium sheet 10287. These sheets bear the notation "Swartzia pinnata" but, as Vogel implied, S. pinnata is a totally different species which in Willdenow’s time was known only from Trinidad.

    The two varieties described by Taubert and Huber are based on insignificant variants in the total population comprising this species. There is usually some micro-pubescence on the undersides of the leaflets but it is caducous, so the recognition of var. puberula Taubert has little point; since the larger stamens vary from 2-5, the presence of 3 in var. tridynamia Huber is not important.

    Ducke’s S. platygyne is not an elevation of the Bentham variety to specific status, as might be suspected from Ducke’s publication; he notes parenthetically this his new species may be the same as S. acuminata var. platygyne Bentham, but then proceeds to cite only recent collections and the short description is based solely on new observations. Actually Bentham’s variety does not belong to this section of the genus but to sect. Possira. The material of S. platygyne has somewhat smaller leaflets and flowers than is typical for the species but there do not appear to be even partial discontinuities in the variation-pattern of this species that would permit the recognition of subspecific taxa.

    Swartzia opacifolia was based on material with apparently immature leaves; it is well within the morphologic limits of the species as treated here. Ducke compared his S. urubuensis to S. polyphylla but pointed out several differences, most of which are difficult to express. There is a rather characteristic aspect, the leaflets being rigid-coriaceous, but it seems better to consider it conspecific and not worth recognition even at a subspecific level.

    The relationship between S. polyphylla and S. schomburgkii is reasonably close, but the latter has a dense indument of microscopic, peltate hairs on the undersides of the leaflets, as well as on other parts. The white-lenticellate fruits of S. polyphylla are also distinctive among the nearly related species.

    This species has an unusually large number of synonyms for this genus, but it is not surprising in view of its very wide-ranging distribution over most of northern South America east of the Andes. At least in the legumes in this part of the world, such a broad geographic range invariably results in considerable morphological polymorphism and this species is no exception.

  • Common Names

    Apamate, araba, bois corbeau, bois pagaie, canjilon de agua, dau bagibagi, manyimo, muracutaca, paracutáca, paracutáca da terra firme, pitaica, pitaica da terra firme, pracuhuba, remocaspi, tachi pequeno

  • Distribution

    (Fig. 12). Widely distributed in the Amazon Basin of Brazil and eastern Peru and Colombia, less frequent in the drainage of the Río Orinoco Basin of Venezuela, infrequent in Guyana and French Guiana (and to be expected in Suriname), and with a single collection from the State of Rio de Janeiro; it is a plant of the primary rain forest, often in the permanently flooded zone along the rivers but also on higher, only seasonally inundated, or rarely inundated soils. It has been collected once in th

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